THE contrast could not be more striking. The leader of the planet’s 1.2 billion Catholics spoke to society’s inclusive embrace of gays, with the question, “Who am I to judge?” No tags, no distinctions.

Pope Francis’ comments on Monday came in an airborne news conference with reporters as he headed home from Brazil.

Monday night, members of the hate-fueled Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., appeared at a Macklemore concert in Kansas City, Mo. to protest the song “Same Love,” about sexual equality and gay marriage.

Macklemore, Seattle’s homegrown rap star, wrote the song with Ryan Lewis and Mary Lambert, and recorded it a year ago during the Referendum 74 campaign to legalize same-sex marriage.